Talk of Broadway (Redwood City, CA)

February 24, 2019 By Hollie in Diners Tags: breakfast, brunch, california, diners, food, Pancakes, san francisco 6 Comments

The last diner I went to while in California, was the Talk of Broadway. We were on our way south and wanted to eat before hiking. The Talk of Broadway was right on our route.

Atmosphere: B
The Talk of Broadway is located in downtown Redwood City. Redwood City is a lovely town, filled with restaurants, and shopping. The outside blends in other restaurants and the inside is a no-frills diner. There are a few booths, tables, and a small bar to sit. When we arrived around lunchtime, it was crowded but not overwhelming. I appreciated no one sat on each other.

Coffee: B
The coffee at the Talk of Broadway was brewed hot and fresh. In fact, the coffee station is in plain sight, so I watched them do it. It was a little darker than I would like but in all good.

Food: C
The Talk of Broadway has plenty of breakfast and lunch options. They are only open until 3 pm, so there isn’t anything heavy or dinner related.

There were many different unique pancake options including “pigs in a blanket” and sweet potato. The pigs in a blanket intrigued me, and it was a sausage wrapped in a pancake. I decided to order it because I don’t remember the last time I saw it.

I wish the pigs in the blanket had lived up to their excitement. They were kind of bland and boring. I was still relatively hungry afterward. I could have probably eaten two meals of them. Was it bad? No. Was it my favorite thing I’ve ordered from a diner? No.

Service: A
The waitress and entire staff were friendly. We had plenty of refills on coffee, plus our food came out fast. The staff was the highlight of the experience.

Cost: $
For my meal and coffee, the cost was $12.

Overall Thoughts/Summary:
The Talk of Broadway was a decent diner. It wasn’t my favorite of the trip, but I would be willing to go back and order something different.

Atmosphere: B
Coffee: B
Food: C
Service: A
Cost: $8-12
Overall: B

You can see all diner reviews here.

Questions for you:
Where are your favorite pancakes from?

Hiking Anderson Lake County Park

February 20, 2019 By Hollie in hiking Tags: california, hike, hiking, san francisco, sunset, views

Hiking Anderson Lake County Park

I am still catching up on hiking posts from California. Anyway, one of my favorite hikes from the entire trip as the Anderson Lake County Park and Reservoir.

On the way up to San Francisco, my husband and I decided to stop at Anderson Lake County Park also known as Anderson Reservoir. Located in Santa Clara County, it’s a 4,275-acre artificial lake. At Anderson Lake County Park, there is plenty of activities, including fishing, boating, and hiking.

While the hike at Anderson Lake County Park is less than a mile to get from the park to the Reservoir, it’s scenic and beautiful. In fact, Anderson Lake County Park was one of my favorite hikes on the entire trip. I was not expecting that!

When we first got to Anderson Lake Park, we were confused and thought, “wow this is small.” We missed the turn to climb to the actual reservoir. We easily found the trail after a little searching. We like to think we took the “car scenic” way.

To get to the top, the trail at Anderson Lake County Park is steep. There isn’t any scrambling, but you do climb quickly. The top of Anderson Lake County Park is worth it though. I don’t know what I was expecting, but everything I expected was blown out of the water.

You could definitely hike around the Anderson Lake County Park and Reservoir, but we were running out of daylight and time. I would love to come back to Anderson Lake County Park sometime and do so! At the Reservoir, there was plenty of room and picnic areas, plus we saw a few power boats in the distance. I was not expecting that at Anderson Lake County Park.

On top of the Anderson dam

Dam selfie

After checking out the damn for a little while, we looked over at the view of mountains. You could see for miles, and with the sun setting, it was one of the best I’ve seen in a long time.

In all, Anderson Lake County Park was one of my favorite hikes of the trip and that I’ve done period. Even though it’s only about a mile, it’s well worth the drive and stop.

View this post on Instagram

Hiked so high, almost touched the sky.

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on Jan 21, 2019 at 5:26pm PST

Other California Hikes:

Mini Trip to Los Angeles

Hiking Calavera Hills Community Park

Questions for you:

Where is your favorite spot to watch the sunset?

Do you like hiking? Where is your favorite spot? Have you been to Anderson Lake County Park?

Mel’s Drive In (San Francisco)

February 17, 2019 By Hollie in Diners Tags: breakfast, california, coffee, diners, food, review, san francisco 2 Comments

Mel’s Drive-In (San Francisco)

While in San Francisco, I knew I wanted to go to another diner. I hadn’t picked any out, but a quick google search led me to Mel’s Drive-In. There are a few Mel’s Drive-In locations in the Bay area, but the location on Lombard street seemed like our best bet. The West Hollywood and Sunset blvd locations sound equally as good.

When we arrived for breakfast, it wasn’t too crowded. Getting through San Francisco traffic is another story, but the diner itself was quiet.

Mel’s Drive-In Atmosphere: A
Mel’s Drive-In sticks out like in San Francisco. You can’t miss the Classic American, shiny, chrome, exterior, and the large Mel’s Drive-In sign. The inside is just as retro, and you feel like you’re in a flashback. There are big metal booths, shiny bars, and tables, and you can see the kitchen.

Mel’s Drive-In Coffee: A
The coffee was brewed hot and fresh, and there were plenty of refills. I appreciated everyone from the waitress, to the manager, and other wait staff came around each table to bring coffee refills.

Mels’ Drive-In Food: A
Mel’s Drive-In menu has all of the diner favorites. There are plenty of breakfast, lunch, and dinner options. They are well known for their chicken as well as the famous Melburger, patty melt, and chef salad. I decided to order the chicken and waffles. After living in Alabama two years ago, and going to John’s City Diner, I’ve been looking for good chicken and waffles.

These were delicious. The chicken was crispy without being overdone, and the waffle was nice and crisp without being burnt. Burnt waffles and soggy waffles are my least favorite.

Mel’s Drive-In Service: A
Our waitress was friendly and brought plenty of refills, and the food came out quickly. I couldn’t have asked for better service.

Cost: $
For my meal and coffee, it was $18.

Overall Thoughts/Summary of Mel’s Drive-In:
I liked Mel’s Drive-In, and if I’m ever in the area again, I’ll be back.

You Can See All Diner Reviews Here.

Questions for you:
Have you had chicken and waffles before?
What is your favorite diner in your area?

Hiking Marin Headlands (San Francisco)

February 5, 2019 By Hollie in hiking Tags: california, fitness, hike, hiking, san francisco, trail

Marin Headlands (San Franciso)

Just north over the Golden Gate Bridge, are the Marin Headlands. My husband and I were looking for a longer and scenic hike, and so we chose to go up to the Marin Headlands. We visited during the government shutdown, which meant all of the bathrooms and buildings were closed, but you could still hike or run. There are a bunch of hikes in Marin Headlands, as well as mountain bike trails, equestrians, and if you are bold enough, you can run the trail. Plus if hiking isn’t your thing you can check out the Center for the arts or Marine Mammal Center.

We decided to hike the perimeter at the Marin Headlands. It’s an easy, wide trail, with the challenge being the elevation changes (about 1600 feet total). While we saw people, it was never busy, or crowded.

Plus there are beautiful views of San Francisco, Pacific Ocean, Tennessee Valley, Golden Gate National, Point Bonita Lighthouse, Hawk Hill, Fort Baker, Fort Cronkhite, and the Bay Area.

This is about what we did: Lagoon Trail → Miwok Trail → Wolf Ridge Trail → Coastal Trail to Rodeo Beach.

The loop at Marin Headlands itself is 7.8 miles, but near the peak, you can walk to the peak which is just over .5. It’s well worth the view and I would recommend it. Getting to the National Park is easy and there are plenty of parking lots.

The start and visitors center and Headlands Center:

We found a well en route at Marin Headlands

You cant tell, but the incline is steep!

We added about .5, to see the summit of the Marin Headlands and the Nike Missile Site. This area is used for flying and the giant building in the middle is called a “VORTAC”. Pilots can gauge where exactly they are in the air via these areas. It can be used in inclement weather when the aircraft is being flown solely from instruments (meaning the pilot is using modern technology to navigate). You can read more about that here.

Eating a cookie at the summit of Marin Headlands

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If you hike 4 hours without cell service…did you even go?

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on Jan 22, 2019 at 3:56pm PST

In all, Marin Headlands was one of my favorite hikes of the trip. Marin Headlands is a beautiful open trail. The terrain is not difficult, but the elevation and climbing are.

Other California Hikes:

Mini Trip to Los Angeles

Hiking Calavera Hills Community Park

You Can See All Hikes Here.

Questions for you:

East Coast rocky trails or West Coast smooth but more climbing trails…which do you prefer? Have you been to Marin Headlands?

FueledByLOLZ

Running and Laughing through the Garden State

Tag Archives: san francisco